24. The Sixty-sixth World Health Assembly adopted a comprehensive
mental health action plan 2013–2020. The
plan sets out a vision and roadmap for mental health for
countries of the world to achieve by 2020. It identifies
specific actions for Member States and for international
and national partners with agreed targets and indicators.
In order to operationalize the vision and roadmap set out
in the plan, a regional framework for scaling up action on
mental health is proposed which identifies key strategic
interventions across the domains of governance, health
care, promotion and prevention, and surveillance, monitoring
and research. It also provides a set of indicators to
monitor progress in implementing these interventions.
The domains correspond to the four objectives of the
mental health action plan 2013–2020 and are guided by
its underpinning principles. However, given that a disproportionately
high number of countries of the Region are
experiencing complex emergencies, the regional framework
also suggests strategic interventions across its first
three domains, which can help countries prepare for, and
minimize, the damaging effects of complex emergencies
on mental health.